My Foray into My Midwestern Roots

First/Cross/Half/Double Cousins

Say what? So what is with the First Cousin “once removed”? What is a “cross” cousin? A “parallel” cousin? Now my grandmother used to call her step-siblings – which were also her first cousins, “Double” cousins, but I’ve since learned that is an incorrect term. Double Cousins are those children whose parents are married to siblings. If two sisters marry two brothers – then the children are “double” cousins because they share the same grandparents, great-grandparents, etc. So I guess you could coin a new term and say my grandmother and her step-siblings/1st cousins were “Half Double” cousins. No, probably not!

For more information on what determines a cross cousin, a parallel cousin, etc. please go to Cousin Calculator for more information!